Friday, March 01, 2013

Giving Greek life a good rap

Here's some heartwarming news heading into the weekend (depending on your politics). The AP reports that a fraternity in Boston has raised $17,000 to pay for gender transition surgery for one of its new pledges.

Emerson College sophomore Donnie Collins, a Phi Alpha Tau new member, planned to have breast removal surgery, which had an $8,000 sticker price. When Collins learned his insurance wouldn't cover the costs, his fraternity brothers stepped up and raised significantly more than that. The AP story says the excess funds will go to organizations that help people pay for similar operations.

This story not only defies the stereotypes of Greek organizations, it strengthens the faith I have in my generation.

Kudos to this fraternity, although I expect there will be plenty more reports of near-fatal hazing that overshadow this good deed.

Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

I am delighted that this fraternity meets your standards.

My fraternity had a gay guy right out of central casting. No one gave him any sh*t and he was pretty popular with the hedonists' club guys on the 4th floor. And this was thirty five years ago. So much for stereotypes of Greek organizations, i.e., yours.

Some time you might want to look at fraternity alcohol related deaths and non-fraternity ones. The fraternity ones always stand out because there's an organization to point fingers at. OTOH, Northwestern's last alcohol victim was an independent.

You're a data analysis guy. Do you not realize how many predictors for liberal political orientation you just packed into that question? Do you maybe want your mythical conservative to be a gay Hispanic, too, just to make it challenging? :)

I appreciate Jessica giving props to the fraternity, but I agree with MCN that greeks are inaccurately stereotyped because they are easy to point to.

My experience was that partying is common across college populations regardless of greek or independent status.

And I would argue that Greeks do WAY more philanthropic work than the average college kid. Most national fraternities & sororities require it as do many universities. But that's not in the public's image of greek kids.

JESSICA REPLY: Paul, I completely agree. I was very involved in my sorority in college, and I know Loyola's Greek life consistently maintained a higher average GPA than the rest of the student body. I regret that my tone in this post implied I agree with the all-they-do-is-party stereotype. The reality is: The countless stories about Greek organizations doing good in the world aren't remembered as much as the handful about pledges/members dying of alcohol poisoning.

Any group has the potential to slip into madness--ever deal with condo boards? But overall I see Greek life as very positively oriented toward healthy fellowship, the good of the members and the community beyond. Where I grew up, the negative stereotype was pretty strong and you would be considered a bit of a dork if you joined a frat or sorority at many schools. When I started college out here, I came to appreciate frats and sororities. I didn't join a frat, but I had many friends and one house in particular was always warmly welcomed.

Ok, they did something laudable. Frats do philanthropic things all the time. Do they only get points and restore faith when it for a left-approved cause? This one was a "forward-thinking fraternity with many gay men," which clearly makes them cooler.

MCN -- It was indeed Sigma Nu!! I told you, brain freeze. I'm guessing Gamma Nu is a made-up name from some movie (perhaps "LEgally Blonde") and I mistook it for reality.

Yes, class of '78. Initials, A P. Kappa was, I believe, across the walkway. We were on a corner. I dated a Theta Chi. (it ended badly) and had a number off friends who were little sisters at Fiji. A good friend is married to a Sigma Nu and he jokes all the time about the house reputation back then as a whole. Ah, days gone by ...

Jessica -- At NU, in the dark ages when I was there, there were very few Medill types in sororities. Was that your experience as well? As you note, Greek life is depicted in a certain way and it's not particularly flattering. One of my regrets for my own girls is that none had any interest in even going through Rush. My Marquette daughter pointed out that Greek life is ridiculed, basically, there. My other two went/go to ISU, both acting majors. Our Thespians also slam Greek life.

I'm not trying to live their lives for them by any means. I just wish it had been an attractive enough option that they considered it.

You guys are really going to rip into Jessica for implying that there is a common stereotype of the greek system being non-diverse and irresponsible?

I agree that it's wrong to paint the system with a broad brush, but don't pretend to be naive about the reputation.

Are you also willing to reject the stereotype that all government workers are lazy and wasteful and all Democrats are socialists that want to take all your money? Or is it just the stereotypes that might reflect on you?

"And I cannot believe all of these organizations didn't reflect ... real life."

IIRC, Paul Lynde was in a frat--in the 40s or early 50s. Do you remember his Burger King incident in the late '70s?

@ Tom:

"I don't know what is the big deal or issue, Jessica. People can have as many gender surgeries as they want, as long as I don't have to pay for it."

I don't think Jessica meant to say that there was something remarkable about a person having gender-reassignment surgery. It was about a particular act of kindness and acceptance that defies a negative "frat boys" stereotype.

MCN,

Over the past ten years, my memory has really taken a big hit. There was a frat on the west side of the North quad, lots of open parties. Do you know which one I'm talking about? What was the name of it?

I'll reject that all government workers are lazy and wasteful and all Democrats are socialists that want to take all your money.

Are you willing to reject the stereotype that conservatives don't want dirty water, kill grandma, or starve the kids. That conservatives are not bigots. Conservatives are not selfisjh because they want to keep more of what they earn?

I understood what you were asking. As I read the comments, I don't think anyone is denying the existence of a negative frat stereotype. It got a little confusing in the beginning because some people thought Jessica was dissing frats, but I think that's been cleared up.

Dr X: This is going against type, but I was an Alpha Delt. If it was AD you're talking about, we might have known each other. Give me some initials of guys you knew, or distinguishing characteristics, like needle marks or arrest records or gunshot wounds, and let's investigate. AD was just south of Fiji.

Oh boy. Remembering names will be tough. I think one guy was P.S., who, iirc dropped out 77ish and there was a guy who played in a band that may have played at some of the parties . For some reason, I think I recall them playing Walk Away... a lot. A young woman, E.Y., who attended many of the parties and I believe was well known to many. She would have graduated c. 78. If we're talking about the same frat, and you were there in the latter half of the 1970s, there is virtually no chance that we didn't meet and talk on many occasions.

I get what you mean about going against type. When I saw the movie Animal House, I remember thinking there's a resemblance. ;) But this was college, and I would assume that almost everyone moved toward more conventional behavior after college.

"Grain alcohol, vodka, gin fruit juice and that awful sweet stuff from the kitchen. Two cups of that and you were on your behind."

It's close to a Southern medicinal remedy my in-laws supported for serious colds and sore throats. A weak tea boiled with lemon slices and pine needles, topped with honey and a few shots of Everclear.
Guaranteed to help you sleep if not cure you...

Beth, did I ever tell you the story about how we stole three car load of pumpkins from Peacock's Ice Cream store? Or when we threw full size refrigerator off the fourth floor sundeck on Day at NU? Or what the Sigma Nu's used to do the Fiji's before the Sigma Nu's because gay?

My house president had the pleasure of talking himself out of that onw. I had nothing to with it, I was over at some Phi Delt's apartment studying for a midterm the night they carved up all the pumpkins, put candles in them, and put them in every single window on Sheridan Rd.

My experience with Greek life at U of I in the 80s fit pretty much all the negative stereotypes. Other than a small faction of girls with pretty severe eating disorders and drinking problems, my sorority wasn't awful. But the fraternities, my boyfriend's in particular, was a cesspool of hard drinking, academic cheating, misogynism, elitism and hazing, all cloaked in a veneer of respectability and popularity. As a result, the prospect of my sons joining fraternities scares the bejeezus out of me.

My husband feels that the "brotherhood" aspect trumps all negatives so this is a serious point of contention between us.

And yes I'd agree, philanthropy is one positive aspect of Greek life but it's not like the good deeds are spontaneous or come naturally to many of the members. From my experience, many viewed the mandatory philanthropic activities as a necessary evil, a price of sorts to pay for the status and party privileges.

About "Change of Subject."

"Change of Subject" by Chicago Tribune op-ed columnist Eric Zorn contains observations, reports, tips, referrals and tirades, though not necessarily in that order. Links will tend to expire, so seize the day. For an archive of Zorn's latest Tribune columns click here. An explanation of the title of this blog is here. If you have other questions, suggestions or comments, send e-mail to ericzorn at gmail.com.
More about Eric Zorn

Contributing editor Jessica Reynolds is a 2012 graduate of Loyola University Chicago and is the coordinator of the Tribune's editorial board. She can be reached at jreynolds at tribune.com.